Extension services can stay vital to agriculture

Friday

If I know anything about my husband, I know he doesn't like beingtold what to do.

Especially from me.

He lovingly offered to help with the laundry once in our newlyweddays. I opined on how I wanted it done. He walked away from the job, and nowonly makes rare appearances in the laundry room.

So why, then, would I enter the treacherous waters of writing anarticle about the future of Extension services, knowing my husband toils eachworking day as an Agriculture and Natural Resources Extension Agent?

Good question.

You know what they say about curiosity.

This time, my curiosity got the best of me. I can't resist thechallenge of those big-picture, pie-in-the-sky, synthesizing questions.

A few weeks ago, I had the pleasure of meeting Dr. John Floros,the new dean of the K-State College of Agriculture and director of Research andExtension. As Dr. Floros was speaking about K-State 2025 and its impact on the College of Agriculture, that big-picture,pie-in-the-sky, synthesizing question began tugging at me.

What is the role ofExtension services, especially Agriculture and Natural Resource Extensionservices, in these modern agriculture times?

In the simplest sense, Extension is a 99-year-old governmentprogram known for helping farmers and homemakers. By serving as the arm toconnect the research conducted at KansasState Universityto the furthest rural corner of every county in Kansas,Extension helped Kansasfarmers increase production to feed our nation through two world wars. By the1950s, one farmer could feed 15 people. And thanks to the diligent work ofresearchers and Extension agents, the technologies of mechanization, hybridseeds and livestock genetics were extended to farmers and ranchers so that by1997 one farmer could feed more than 140 people.

Hasn't Extension served itspurpose then?

In these modern agriculture times, the life of a farmer is vastlydifferent than it was in the 1950s. And the scope of the entire industry ismuch different, too. Support systems and new technologies have emerged fromplaces other than Extension. Calling up the agent in town, having him (or her)drive to your farm and diagnose your situation, much like attendinginformational evening meetings, is how my father does things. But my brother useshis phone to send pictures of crop issues to his agronomist, buys cattlethrough online auctions, and can watch webinars any hour of the day.

Hoes does Extensionmaintain its relevancy?

Gregg Hadley, assistant director of Agriculture, NaturalResources and Community Development for K-State Research and Extension, is nostranger to this question. "Yes, we have helped agriculture become more modern,more productive and more profitable. However, are we to stop modernizing farms?The answer is no."

Those of us close to production agriculture know that the next 25years will bring dynamic change. Feeding another 2 billion people in the next25 years on decreasing agricultural land will present quite a challenge.

Hadley adds, "Agricultural productivity is going to have toincrease at a rate that has never been experienced before. Granted,agribusinesses do a great job at assisting with this; however, manyagribusinesses collaborate with Land Grant and Extension in doing so. Manyagribusiness personnel take our education programs."

"Plus, there is so much information available to farmers and theissues the modern farmer faces are so complex, that many producers need atrusted and competent individual to help them sort through all the information,determine what is relevant for their issues, and empower them with the skillsneeded to make the best decision for their farm. Our Extension professionalsare uniquely situated to provide this type of support to farmers, farm familiesand farm managers."

What says the Extension professionalI'm married to?

"I'm not pushing the products or services of any agribusiness. Myjob is to provide unbiased, research-based information that is in the bestinterest of the producer.

"I also see my job as important in offering support as farms arepassed down to the next generation. This next generation of producers will haveto manage larger farm sizes and strive to get even more output from thosefarms."

Hadley takes that thought one step further: "There are manyissues that farmers and their families face that aren't as widely addressed inthe agriculture industry because the issues are multifaceted and require arange of expertise: family business management and succession, human resourcemanagement, working with issues related to a culturally diverse workforce,water quality and quantity issues, young farmer programs, agricultural safetyand broad-based risk management."

If farmers are less than 3percent of the population, is Extension worth the $46.3 million price tag?

According to Hadley, Extension services, which also reach wellbeyond agriculture and natural resources into areas of family and consumer sciences,youth development and community development, come at a price of $42 per Kansas household.

Perhaps this is the most pertinent question facing Extensionprofessionals. They have successfully engaged the producers of my father'sgeneration. But what about my generation? My brother and his farming peers get information and communicate in newand constantly changing ways. If Extension can find ways to successfully engagethe new generation, sort through the overload of information available toproducers, and make it relevant, simple, convenient and useful, then no doubt,Extension is worth my $42 and yours, too.

What will Extension looklike in 2025?

The whole of Kansas State University,under the guidance of President Kirk Schultz, is embarking on a plan to makeK-State a Top 50 Public Research institution by 2025. One expected outcome ofthis plan is for the university to be "nationally and internationallyrecognized for engagement on a global scale, as well as reaching rural andurban communities."

This speaks directly to the role of Research and Extension, andone doesn't have to look further than the dean of the College of Agricultureto see this already playing out. Dean Floros, whose roots are in Greece andwhose background is in food science, brings international experience and a viewof the agriculture industry well beyond commodity production. His hire saysvolumes of what's to come from K-State in the next 12 years.

Agriculture and Natural Resource Extension's relevancy goingforward lies in its ability to connect with the incoming, technologically savvygeneration of food producers, and to reach out to every food consumer, everytaxpaying Kansas household, as the source for objective, research-based andcredible information about how their food goes from farm to table.

And when it all boils down, the real challenge lies in the handsof the local Extension professional, the hands of the guy I'm married to. Weknow more and more research will be coming from K-State. But only if the localagent can truly understand the needs of the county or district he serves,filter through the extensive amounts of information, and translate thatinformation in a manner that is useful and accessible - be it an eveningmeeting or a webinar - can Extension's relevancy be maintained.

I sure hope my husband doesn't walk away from the challenge athand, even if I told him what to do. Because only I can understand how uniquelysuited he is to play a very important role in answering the biggest, and mostbasic, question of all: How do we feed the world?

Sarah Goss is a nativeKansan and full-time mother of four. She and her family are making their homein rural Ellsworth County. Her children areher top clients, but her devotion to agriculture and rural communitydevelopment runs a close second.